Page 18 of Unhinged Alphas

Wasn't it?

The memory of Plague's hands on me, rough and demanding, sends an unexpected shiver down my spine. I shift in my seat, trying to shake off the sudden heat pooling in my gut.

Fuck. Now isnotthe time to be thinking about that.

Valek pauses, his hand on the doorknob. "That would mean leaving Ivy alone with..." He trails off, but we all know what he's thinking.

Wraith.

The big guy is standing in the corner, his arms crossed over his massive chest, what's left of his lower face unreadable behind that gas mask. But I can feel the tension radiating off him, the barely leashed violence that always seems to simmer just beneath the surface.

"You should stay, too," Thane says to me, his voice brooking no argument. "You're not exactly low profile."

I open my mouth to protest, but then snap it shut again. He's right, damn him. Last time I went on a mission to the underworld, I got a little too drunk and slapped an alpha mafioso on the ass. Almost got us all killed. Worth it, though, considering he was clearly about to assault the waitress, and the look on his face when he realized the tables had turned was priceless.

They probably have a fucking bounty on my head. And the underworld is pretty much all that's left of society out there in the Outer Reaches.

Besides, staying behind means I'll have more time with Ivy. Maybe I can cheer her up, get her to open up a bit. She's been so distant lately, so withdrawn. It's like she's retreated into herself, pulling away from all of us.

"You should get a present for her at the market," I say, leaning forward to rest my elbows on the table. "Something to make her smile. Has anyone else noticed how distant she's been lately?"

Plague nods, his mask bobbing slightly. "I've noticed," he says, his voice muffled butunmistakably concerned. "She's been withdrawing from all of us."

A knot forms in my gut. So it's not just me, then. I've been trying to tell myself I'm imagining things, that maybe Ivy just needs some time to adjust. But hearing Plague confirm it makes it real.

"She barely leaves her room," I mutter, running a hand through my hair. "And when she does, it's like she's not even here. Just going through the motions."

The memory of Ivy's blank stare as she passed me in the hallway yesterday flashes through my mind. It was like she looked right through me, her beautiful blue-green eyes dull and lifeless. Nothing like the fiery omega who'd fought us tooth and nail when we first brought her here.

Almost like she's planning something. Biding her time.

Or she regrets what happened between us.

"Her past is still largely a mystery," Thane muses, his brow furrowed in thought. "We don't know what she went through at the Center, not really."

"And until we do, we can't truly help her heal," Plague agrees, his voice heavy with regret.

Thane is silent for a long moment, his gazedistant. Then he sighs, a weary sound that seems to come from deep within his chest. "While I'm already in the capital, I might as well pay the Center a visit. See what I can find out."

I feel a flicker of rage at the thought of that place, of the horrors Ivy must have endured behind those walls. I've only ever passed it once heading into the city, and it looked a hell of a lot nicer than anything out in the Outer Reaches from the outside. Nicer than most places in the capital, too.

But I guess some prisons aren't obvious. I can't even imagine what it must have been like for her, trapped and alone, at the mercy of those twisted fucks.

I'm no angel myself, but there is a line I won't cross.

Harming an omega.

I know one thing for sure. Whatever they did to her, whatever scars they left on her body and her soul...

We'll make them pay.

We'll burn that fucking place to the ground and salt the earth until nothing's left but ashes and bitter memories.

Thane pushes back from the table, his expression set in determination. "Valek, Plague, you twohead out to the market. See what you can find out."

Valek is clearly pissy about having a chaperone, but he doesn't argue as Plague follows him through the door. Just scowls and mutters a slew of Vrissian curses under his breath with "bird" mixed in here and there.

Plague glances back at me like he's going to say something, but whatever it is, he changes his mind. I watch him go, trying not to make it too obvious.